Suchergebnisse

My target in the present text is to discuss the possibilities and pitfalls of the study of international institutions' design. To achieve this goal I critically review the existing literature on the topic and outline three key reasons for which I believe much of the work on institutional design to be theoretically problematic, and for which any meaningful progress of the study of design as a research programme is unlikely. I argue that we can overcome these problems by returning and sticking to the original concept of institutions as mechanisms for transmission of information that was formulated in the institutional theory in international relations. On the basis of this concept we can develop a research programme on institutional design that takes seriously the basic realist findings about the power nature of international politics. Besides this, by focusing on the information transmission function of institutions we open the space for application of the potentially highly relevant findings from the area of the so-called organizational cybernetics to the study of international relations. With their help new methods for diagnosis of the institutions' functions can be developed and important new empirical and theoretical findings can be achieved. Adapted from the source document.

This article aspires to overcome the barriers to a dialogue between the problem-solving and critical approaches to international peacebuilding. From the perspective of modern constructivism hypotheses are formulated concerning the influence of international peacebuilding on the development of sustainable democratic self-governance in the target countries. The hypotheses are tested on two cases of international initiatives in the post-Dayton Bosnia and Herzegovina -- the cases of the defense and the police sector reforms. The empirical analysis then validates the hypotheses, and the results are presented in charts. The main idea of the article is that adherence to the principles of liberal governance in the course of international peacebuilding is considerably vital for the build-up of liberal peace in the target country in itself. Adapted from the source document.

Contemporarily human rights are ranked among the most crucial foreign policy priorities in many countries. At the same time numerous states are forced to consider the human rights agenda under growing international pressure. The substance of foreign policy in the field of human rights, its intensity & instruments vary in many different aspects. The paper focuses on foreign policy in the field of human rights analysis. Its aim is to comprehend & extend prevailing methods in order to obtain an analytical scheme applicable to almost every country. To fulfill this aim it includes several steps, the most important of which are: examining the essence of analyzing foreign policy in the field of human rights as a specific part of the foreign policy agenda, introduction & elaboration of the so called Mower's apparatus, interpretation of foreign policy in the field of human rights using different levels of analysis & developing methods of its evaluation. In the end the paper summarizes the current state of research & makes some recommendations for the future. Adapted from the source document.

While Marek Louzek has drawn attention to several issues important for International Relations (IR), his conclusions are highly controversial. In his identification of the basic theoretical approaches to international relations, Louzek disregards liberalism & radicalism, which, alongside the realism identified by Louzek, constitute the three basic approaches in IR. Louzek also inaccurately defines, & rather overestimates, the general significance of public choice theory (PCT) as a possible perspective on international relations & European integration. In this context, the real intellectual core of PCT does not lie in an emphasis on the role of individuals, as Louzek claims, but on the role of social groups. Moreover, a large number of other theories, both in IR & European Studies, emphasize the importance of social groups. Finally, Louzek's explanation of the EU's Eastern enlargement based on PCT lacks a well-developed methodology, has a narrow scope, & subsequently fails to convince. Adapted from the source document.

The issue of international human rights norms which have not yet been fully established within the existing international human rights standard belongs at present to the essential components of the UN Human Rights Council agenda. Based on a synthesis of legal and political notions of the process of emergence of human rights norms, the paper attempts to clearly define and classify these emerging norms, which are sometimes called "new" human rights. At the same time it focuses on individual emerging human rights that are included on the Council's agenda, examines the stages they reached in the international norm cycle and briefly discusses the tools used by the UN Human Rights Council to achieve progress in this respect and turn the norms in statu nascendi into full international standards. Adapted from the source document.

Der Prozeß einer weltweiten wirtschaftlichen Globalisierung nimmt an Geschwindigkeit und Umfang zu. "Global players" suchen sich steuergünstigste Produktionsstätten, beste Technologien, billigste Arbeitsmärkte, schellste Zulieferer und Transporteure aus, was die fortschreitende Verlagerung der Produktionszentren von deren Ursprungsländern ins Ausland impliziert. Sinkende Steuereinnahmen und ansteigende Arbeitslosigkeit zehren an der sozialen Stabilität der betroffenen westlichen Demokratien. Es zeigt sich, daß der Markt zwar imstande ist, Umwälzungen ganzer Kontinente herbeizuführen, nicht aber Bedürfnisse der Gesellschaft sicherzustellen, in der die Regeln der Solidarität und Humanität gelten. (BIOst-Hrs)

This article deals with the relationship between Norway & the European Union. Norway is now the only Scandinavian country that is not a member of the EU. Nevertheless, it cooperates with the EU very closely in an increasing number of areas. Norway's membership in the European Economic Area has positive, as well as negative, consequences for the country. In addition, Norway is facing many challenges related to the enlargement of the EU. The divergence between the foreign policies of the US & the EU puts Norway in an uncomfortable position. On the basis of assessment of these factors, the authors conclude that it is possible that Norway would apply for membership in the EU after the forthcoming elections in September 2005. Tables, References. Adapted from the source document.

After the withdrawal of Serbian units from Kosovo in the second half of 1999, we could witness Kosovo being transformed into an unstable area while the KLA became the informal ruler of the country with de facto unrestricted authority. Several originally classified documents leaked into the public domain in the last two years. These were authored by various international institutions, and they indicate the involvement of former KLA high officers and current leading Kosovar politicians in the illegal trade with organs of Serbian POWs. During the unofficial investigation of the whole issue, there appeared several obscurities and controversies that cast a bad light on the passive and often rather opportunistic approach of the international community, which has, moreover, repeatedly failed to protect key secret witnesses. However, the report of Dick Marty and the establishment of the EULEX Special Investigation Team headed by Clint Williamson give us some hope that the investigation will bring tangible results and the whole case will be legitimately closed. Adapted from the source document.

The main goal of the article is to highlight the marked difference between two understandings of geopolitics and space in general the understanding that is present in the field of geography and the understanding that is present in the field of International Relations. Whereas in International Relations (namely in the case of neorealists) space is conceptualized as a material, objective entity, in the field of geography there has been a shift toward a conceptualization of space as an inter-subjective entity. It follows that in the case of neorealists there is some (usually unintentional) tendency to revive (neo)classical geopolitics, or at least some of its basic assumptions. On the other hand, contemporary geographers have adopted a boldly critical approach toward (neo)classical geopolitics. Geographers consider (neo)classical geopolitics as potentially dangerous because of its justification of the conflictual discourses prevailing in international politics. The question remains whether the geographical neglect of objective space does not undermine the ability of critical geopolitics to effectively intervene in practical political issues. Adapted from the source document.

A review essay on books by (1) George Lakoff & Mark Johnson, Metafory, kterymizijeme (Brno: Host, 2002); (2) Francis A. Beer & Christ'l De Landtsheer [Eds], Metaphorical World Politics (East Lansing: Michigan State U Press, 2004); (3) Andreas Musolff, Mirror Images of Europe. Metaphors in the Public Debate about Europe in Britain and Germany (Munchen: Iudicium, 2000); (4) Rainer Hulsse, Metaphern der EU-Erweiterung als Konstruktion europaischer Identitat (Baden-Baden: Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft, 2003); & Hans Verboven, Die Metapher als Ideologie: Eine kognitiv-semantische Analyse der Kriegsmetaphorik im Fruhwerk Ernst Jungers (Heidelberg: Universitatsverlag WINTER, 2003).